1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to improved cushioned footwear of the type such as goodyear welt constructed footwear and the apparatus for making such footwear. Unlike prior art footwear of this type, the presence of the cushioning means in the present invention requires only an insignificant increase in the size of the upper and thus is particularly useful in footwear such as western boots, where the aesthetic appearance is a significant element in the marketability of the footwear.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is well known to include cushioning means in footwear to provide greater comfort to the wearer. Cushioning means in the heel area have been particularly effective in dampening forces and relieving the symptoms of bone jarring while walking or running. One such cushioning means, which is substantially identical to the cushioning means disclosed herein, has been sold by Georgia Boot Inc., the assignee of the present invention, under the "Comfort Core" trademark. This cushioning means and the footwear within which it is used is described in pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/101,964 "Shoe with Insole as Part Sole Filler and Method of Making Same". The assignee of the present application is also the assignee of the aforementioned application.
Such prior art cushioning means have been formed of open or closed cell foam in various thicknesses. The foam has usually been bonded to the insole while still in sheet form or separately included as an insert after the footwear was produced. In addition to the cushioning means noted above, certain other such cushioning means have included discrete heel cushioning means (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 1,718,906, issued to E. F. Hurley for "Cushion Heel Shoe"). Prior art footwear utilizing cushioning means have included cavities in the outsole in which the cushioning means were placed. One such means for forming the cavity in the outsole is disclosed in U.K. Pat. No. 144091 to Griggs et al. for "Footwear".
Certain prior art footwear, exemplified by goodyear welt constructed footwear, have not previously utilized a cushioning means having a heel plug located within a cavity in the heel area. The reasons for not doing so included the fact that the presence of nails in the heel area of such footwear led shoe designers away from attempting to provide a heel cavity in the heel area. The nails in the heel area included heel nails for securing the heel to the footwear and/or heel seat nails for securing the tuck, insole, lining, counter and upper and/or gang nails for securing the outsole, rand, upper, counter, lining insole and tuck. In addition, such prior art footwear typically included a rigid shank which extended into the heel area, and this, too, led shoe designers away from attempting to provide a heel cavity in the heel area. It is to the prior art devices discussed in this paragraph that the present invention is directed.
Prior art footwear formed by goodyear welt construction did have heel cushioning means, but these cushioning means were typically not located in heel cavities in the heel area; they were merely placed on the innersole. To accommodate the cushioning means in such footwear, the usual practice was to increase the size of the upper to accommodate a last that had the heel cushioning means thickness added thereto. That practice, however, resulted in a distorted appearing upper and was not aesthetically satisfactory. In another approach, the size of the footwear was increased, perhaps by a half or an entire size to accommodate the added thickness of the cushioning means. This, however, resulted in a loose fitting footwear.